Friday, October 22, 2010

A Look at Stupid

Scripture Verse that Caught my attention today: Job 11:12 But a stupid person will get understanding, when a wild ass is born human.

Observation: Hmmm…

Application: Recently I’ve seen some online posts concerning ‘stupid’ people. I think one of them was the old adage “you can’t fix ‘stupid.’” I must admit, based on the above verse alone, such might appear to be the case.

But not so fast… This verse, though scriptural, was spoken by “Zophar the Naamathite.” He was one of Job’s three ‘friends’ who was basically trying to criticize him. In a turn of events, by the time chapter 42 rolls around, Zophar and the other two friends will be dependent on Job’s prayer to save them from the wrath of God. Why? Because “[they] have not spoken of me [the Lord] what is right.” Now who looks stupid?

Truth be told, at least according to Jeremiah 10:14 and its identical twin verse in Jeremiah 51:17, “Everyone is stupid and without knowledge;
goldsmiths are all put to shame by their idols;
for their images are false,
and there is no breath in them.”

Psalm 94:6 puts it this way: “The dullard cannot know,
the stupid cannot understand this:”

Then there’s Proverbs 30:2 Surely I am too stupid to be human;
I do not have human understanding.

Now we’re getting somewhere. All of us are full of folly at one or more levels. And whether or not ‘stupid’ can be fixed, it most certainly can be redeemed. And while from a human point of view this doesn’t appear to be the brightest thing our Lord has ever done (redeeming the likes of us), it is certainly the most loving. Hence, as Paul reminds us in 1 Corinthians 13, love far surpasses knowledge in the gift department.

Prayer: Lord, there are certainly days (some might say ‘everyday!’) when I’m not the brightest of your children. But I thank you for using me nevertheless. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

(Scripture Readings today included: Job 11-12, Acts 12-13)

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